Barbarians and fighters and the best abilities for them

[ArnoldRimmer]

I just completed the game and was thinking of trying again as a barbarian. I wanted some advice about making one and was quite surprised to see nearly every thread or web page suggesting that you should forget about CON and add intelligence... I never heard of intelligent barbarians before, but the land where PoE is set must be crawling with'em. The same wierdness happens with fighters... all the threads seem to suggest forgetting about CON/DEX and having fighters with high might, perception, and resolve...

 

Doesn't this suggest that there is something wrong with the system? Are barbarians useless with low int? is the AoE for carnage so great that I should make one smart enough to be a wizard instead of investing in more dex or con? If a barbarian's abillities require high intelligence to b uesful/workable surely the system should be changed?

Edited August 16, 2015 by ArnoldRimmer

[Nobear]

I just completed the game and was thinking of trying again as a barbarian. I wanted some advice about making one and was quite surprised to see nearly every thread or web page suggesting that you should forget about CON and add intelligence... I never heard of intelligent barbarians before, but the land where PoE is set must be crawling with'em. The same wierdness happens with fighters... all the threads seem to suggest forgetting about CON/DEX and having fighters with high might, perception, and resolve...

 

Doesn't this suggest that there is something wrong with the system? Are barbarians useless with low int? is the AoE for carnage so great that I should make one smart enough to be a wizard instead of investing in more dex or con? If a barbarian's abillities require high intelligence to b uesful/workable surely the system should be changed?

 

Are you planning to solo or play a full party? A high Int barbarian I think is generally advised in the context of spreading debuffs (like stun or prone on crit) from his weapons through carnage in a party.

 

The fighter build you're referring to is a pure tank build, which is ironic seeing the dumped Con, but a pure tank can become almost invincible (after, say, level 6, vs most level-appropriate fights) by focusing on passive defenses. If enemies hardly ever land a hit (let alone a crit) against him, his health simply won't drop enough for Con to matter.

 

Note that this all applies to 1.0.6. The system has changed significantly in 2.0, which is still in beta and only available on Steam, but it will go live in about a week. Are you planning to play in 1.0.6 or 2.0?

Edited August 16, 2015 by Nobear

[Blades of Vanatar]

I thought the same way at first. Then I realized this isn't D&D. Which is the engine I have mostly played. I like the change. It's refreshing.

Edited August 17, 2015 by Blades of Vanatar

[ArnoldRimmer]

 

I just completed the game and was thinking of trying again as a barbarian. I wanted some advice about making one and was quite surprised to see nearly every thread or web page suggesting that you should forget about CON and add intelligence... I never heard of intelligent barbarians before, but the land where PoE is set must be crawling with'em. The same wierdness happens with fighters... all the threads seem to suggest forgetting about CON/DEX and having fighters with high might, perception, and resolve...

 

Doesn't this suggest that there is something wrong with the system? Are barbarians useless with low int? is the AoE for carnage so great that I should make one smart enough to be a wizard instead of investing in more dex or con? If a barbarian's abillities require high intelligence to b uesful/workable surely the system should be changed?

 

Are you planning to solo or play a full party? A high Int barbarian I think is generally advised in the context hof spreading debuffs (like stun or prone on crit) from his weapons through carnage in a party.

 

The fighter build you're referring to is a pure tank build, which is ironic seeing the dumped Con, but a pure tank can become almost invincible (after, say, level 6, vs most level-appropriate fights) by focusing on passive defenses. If enemies hardly ever land a hit (let alone a crit) against him, his health simply won't drop enough for Con to matter.

 

Note that this all applies to 1.0.6. The system has changed significantly in 2.0, which is still in beta and only available on Steam, but it will go live in about a week. Are you planning to play in 1.0.6 or 2.0?

 

 

 

Hi.

 

I want to make a full party... I thought I would try out having a barbarian and a fighter.  If I don't have a high int is my barbarian useless? I really don't see this character having lots just for game mechanics, I don't won't him to be a smart as a wizard just to get carnage to be useable... could I just leave it at 10? Are the effects of lowering it very bad?

[Raven Darkholme]

10 is fine, don't dump it, don't max it.

[Boeroer]

I have a barbarian who has max MIG, DEX and INT while having min CON and low PER and RES. Still I use him as offtank with an enormous carnage radius. It's fun to watch when he swings his great sword (try the overbearing Hours of St. Rumbalt) and a lot of enemies suddenly decide to sit on their a**es for a while after they got carnaged. With the right items, you can do that. With different items: not a chance - he then has to stay away from harm. Since barbarians have such high endurance and health values, even with 3 CON he's the guy with the highest endurance in the party. The low PER and RES make him a glass cannon though - if he lacks the right equipment. I even boosted INT further with the Dunryd Demon (Helmet, +2 INT). This leads to very long durations for all debuffs, heals and buffs that he triggers. So barbaric shouts, frenzy and so on last longer - consecrated ground (from Shod-In-Faith boots) lasts very long, duration of scrolls and potions is very high, knocking multiple enemies prone is good because they lie around forever and so on.

So I basically would say: Yes! Dump CON and max INT, MIG and DEX on a barbarian. Bit thats just my opinion. You can build a viable barbarian if you don't do that of course. My first one had 10 INT, 3 DEX and maxed CON, was a fire godlike and used retaliation items. Also worked well as a second tank and shouting debuffer after he found some thick armour and bolstered that even further with the right talents and items plus enchantments (Talent from Crucible Knights, Tick Skinned, Blunting Belt or Hiro's Mantle, Crush-Proof Enchantment). It was just an other playstyle. In Version 2.0, many things will be different: High CON is giving much more Endurance and Health now, PER is influencing accuracy. So the build that I'm using know and that I mentioned at first won't work as well any more.

[Nobear]

Hi.

 

I want to make a full party... I thought I would try out having a barbarian and a fighter.  If I don't have a high int is my barbarian useless? I really don't see this character having lots just for game mechanics, I don't won't him to be a smart as a wizard just to get carnage to be useable... could I just leave it at 10? Are the effects of lowering it very bad?

 

As far as what people tend to consider optimal for a debuff-spreading barbarian in a party, you've heard the case for maxed Int. However, if you've beat the game already, you can certainly beat it with an average Int barbarian, and it sounds like the RP consideration is more important to you in this case. Nothing wrong with that. This game is soloable on PoTD, so it's not like your party will be totally gimped because you have a barbarian with 10 Int lol. If that's what you want, go for it.

Edited August 17, 2015 by Nobear